Buffy Summers crept stealthily around a grave stone. She was spending her Friday night in a graveyard for a change. Well, when you live on a Hellmouth, spending Friday nights out on a date isn't really an option for you, Buffy thought grimly. At least she had company.
"So what exactly are we looking for here. Just normal vamps?" Xander Harris asked a little too loudly.
"Been some unresolved death cases lately," Buffy said, "Giles thought it looked suspicious."
"Animal mauling again?"
"Pretty much. Just… you know, from bats that have some how manifested in the forest and actually drink the blood of Sunnydale residents."
"Right, cause that idea sounds SO plausible."
Buffy shrugged. "More plausible than the truth."
Xander sighed, and followed Buffy at a crouch behind a mausoleum. "Ow!" he yelped.
She glared at him. "What?"
"I stubbed my toe," Xander whined.
"Stub it more quietly next time," the slayer hissed.
Xander nodded and followed her as quietly as possible until, "How many vampires are we looking for here?"
"Giles wasn't sure. Thus, the slaying mission."
"Aww, so were not sure if it's a pack of them or if the vampires of Sunnydale are just getting more forward," Xander confirmed. "Wait, on second thought, do vampires even travel in packs? I mean dogs travel in packs, and fish travel in schools, so what do vampires…"
"Duck," Buffy yelled and threw him out of the way for good measures. She was already flying as the vampire barreled into her. As she fought for her life, she found herself wondering, ironically, why all vampires either knew how to play football or had an unexplained martial arts ability. She ducked a flying kick and tried to regroup as she took stock of their present situation.
Four vampires, surrounding she and Xander on all sides. She frowned, no it wasn't four. There were five of them. But the fifth, the only female of the group, was leisurely standing against a tree. Arms folded over her chest, she examined her nails and looked almost… bored. Something rammed into her and she landed hard on the ground, scowling up at the sky. That would teach her to try and sort out vampiric feelings during a fight. Flipping up, she rammed a stake through the back of her offender. One down, three more to go.
Xander was currently trying to help Buffy by… getting himself in trouble. As usual. He had a stake out and was all ready to turn the vampire into dust when it growled and batted the stake away. " Is there anyway we could talk about this?" Xander asked, a moment before he found himself laying flat on his back. The vampire loomed over him, and Xander said a mental goodbye to his friends and family.
"Go for the slayer, Dufus!" the female leaning against the tree hollered.
Obediently, the vampire turned and went after Buffy. The slayer, sending a stake in the heart of her third vampire of the night, turned and faced the last of the attacking vamps with a scowl marring her pretty face. "Okay, you know you're going to die, so why not just come here and let me stake you like a good little minion? It would really save us a lot of time. Not to mention the expense of having to wash grass stains out of my clothes." With a howl the vampire flung himself as fast as he could towards Buffy… and impaled himself right on her outstretched stake. "See? That wasn't so hard!"
Buffy glanced at the tree where the leader had been standing, not in the least bit surprised to see that she had left. Giving Xander a hand up she muttered, "Skips out as soon as the going gets just a little bit rough."
"While I agree wholeheartedly," Xander exclaimed, clutching his stomach, "let's not let the vampires go for poor defenseless me again."
"Sorry Xand. If it makes you feel any better, you were doing great until the vampire…"
"Decided to actually attack me," Xander said a bit too morosely.
Buffy frowned. Xander? Negative? "Hey… if you hadn't distracted big and beefy there, I might have been chopped Buffy."
"Yeah, that's true isn't it?" Xander agreed, happier this time.
Wow, talk about major mood swings Buffy thought, time to change the subject. "I think that constituted as not-normal vamp activity."
"Yes, but by saying that you're admitting that it's *ever* normal."
"Sometimes I wish a vampire's only lot in life was to kill and create mayhem."
Xander frowned. "Yeah… that would be nice," he confirmed doubtfully.
"But, no, they have to do weird things like *watch* you slay. Or suck the world into hell. It would be so much easier if they just killed us."
Xander stared at her like she'd grown a second head.
Buffy sighed. "Whatever. At least it'll make Giles happy."
Xander groaned and made a faux cross with his fingers. "No…" he moaned, "no… please… no…"
Buffy patted him tiredly on the shoulder. "Sorry, Xander. I wish there was some way to get out of it. But… Giles likes his research."
Xander scowled darkly. "I mean, gee, who wouldn't want to spend Saturday morning in the school library?"
-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
Daniel drew in a deep breath. The smell of the sewer attacked her overly sensitive nostrils, acidic and strong. But it didn't matter. The sewers were not the ideal place to start her kingdom, but it was protection against the sunlight. And the slayer. If the slayer found her now all would be lost. And Daniel would never let that happen.
She closed her eyes, breathed in the harsh smell a second time. She was free. After 80 years of pain, suffering, and torment Mussini had let her go. She was not going to fail him this time. Daniel was going to get her resurrection, no matter what the cost was.
She wasn't stupid. She knew that she needed an army behind her. The slayer was strong, perhaps stronger than the one who wouldn't give up last time she had tried in Lyons. Sacrificing four precious minions was risky, albeit necessary. She couldn't very well go about killing the slayer if she didn't know how the warrior fought.
The morning was still early, the sun still far off. It meant she had plenty of time to start turning vampires over to her cause. Locals first. Locals had valuable information about the slayer.
To fight one's opponent, one must know them.
It didn't take Daniel long to find exactly what she was looking for. A group of fledgling male vampires. She was disgusted, of course. How could they stand there, drinking, when the slayer could appear at any moment and slap a stake in their backs? But they would have to do
The four of them were wearing matching leather jackets with skulls on the back. Daniel made a mental note to get ride of those once they joined her. The leader of the group, a big vampire with blood still on his mouth from his last kill, stood up and glared at Daniel.
She smiled, it was so much more fun when they tried to oppose her.
"What do you want?" the leader growled viscously.
Daniel grinned and twirled her hair girlishly. "What any vampire would want. Kill the slayer, take over the town, and bring hell on earth. It's all quite simple, really."
The quartet laughed drunkenly. "Here that boys? The lady thinks she's mighty powerful."
Daniel smiled again, letting out a little chuckle. "What? You don't believe me?"
The vampires burst out laughing again, slapping each other on the back and hitting their knees. The leader held out his hand, "What's your name, my lovely?"
"Daniel."
A long pause of silence crept over the group. Perhaps, she thought to herself, they weren't as stupid as they looked. "The Daniel?" one of the vamps breathed.
The leader hit him on the head. "No! Ridiculous! Daniel is gone."
Daniel threw back her head, whispered a silent prayer. And all vampires bent down to her.
"Master," they said in unison.
This time it was Daniel who laughed.
TBC